How to Use S20 Tools

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The information in this Wiki Page applies to Surveyor 2.0 (S20) as found in Trainz Plus.

This document is  under development 

In Summary:

The Tools Palette

Tools and keymap for S20
Notes:

If the Tools Palette is not shown on the screen, then:-

Windows Menu
1. open the Window Menu from the menu icons at the top of the screen
 
  • visible palettes with have ticks next to their names
2. Left click on the item Tools Palette
 
  • this will add a tick and make the Tools Palette visible
3. make sure that the Tools Options Palette is also visible

The Brush Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  W 

The Brush Tool is used for painting the landscape. It can:-

  • adjust the height of the terrain
  • add ground textures
  • add Effect Layers
  • add Scrapbook scenes

When selected, the Brush Tool will show two drop down menu lists.

Brush Tools
The first drop down menu will set the Brush Target, the type of brush. The Targets are:-
  • Ground Height
  • Ground Texture
  • Scrapbook Data
  • Edit Effect Layers

 Ground Height 

When this Target is selected, the second drop down box will give a choice of several Ground Height tools. The choices are:-
  • Height Up
  • Height Down
  • Set Height
  • Grade
The different control options available with this brush tool are shown in the Tools Options Palette. If this palette is not visible on the screen then refer to the Notes at the top of this document.
The available brush tool options are shown with a  Gold  coloured icon next to their names. Those options that have their icon greyed out will be ignored, but they can still be edited.
 Height Up/Height Down 
Up/Down brush options
 Set Height 
Height brush options
 Grade 
Grade brush options

 Radius  the brush radius (metres) - see Notes: below
Range:  5m and above
 Height  the brush height (metres)
Range:  -3000m to 3000m
 Sensitivity  the rate at which the height changes
Range:  1% (very slowly) to 100% (very fast)
 Grade  slope gradient - see Notes: below
Range:  0% = flat ("Plateau" in Classic) to
  ±100% = steep (but not vertical)
 Angle  grade up direction (degrees)
Range:  0° (North), to ±359°
a negative value reverses the grade
Notes:

Unlike Surveyor Classic, there appears to be no upper limit to the brush  Radius . Brushes of hundreds of metres (even kilometres) in size are possible. However, if you are using the brush to set an entire baseboard, or many baseboards, to a specific height then the Marquee Tool may be a better choice.
The  Grade  may cause some confusion. It is defined as height (vertical) over distance (horizontal) converted to a percentage figure. So a grade of 100% (the maximum allowed) would mean a slope formed by the height and distance being the same (e.g. a height increase of 50m over a distance of 50m). A vertical slope (a cliff) would have an infinite grade which is currently impossible in Surveyor.


 Ground Texture 

When this Target is selected, the second drop down box will be disabled - there are no brush texture tool choices. The different control options available with this brush tool are shown in the Tools Options Palette. If this palette is not visible on the screen then refer to the Notes at the top of this document.
The available brush tool options are shown with a  Gold  coloured icon next to their names. Those options that have their icon greyed out will be ignored, but they can still be edited.

Texture brush options
 Radius  the brush radius (metres) - see Notes: below
Range:  5m and above
 Sensitivity  texture transparency
Range:  1% = almost transparent, to
  100% = solid (opaque)
 Rotation  initial rotation angle (degrees)
Range:  0° to ±360° (larger angles can be entered)
 Scale  the texture pattern size (scale)
Range:  0.01% = smallest, to 100% = full size
Notes:

Unlike Surveyor Classic, there appears to be no upper limit to the brush  Radius . Brushes of hundreds of metres (even kilometres) in size are possible. If you are using the brush to paint an entire baseboard, or many baseboards, then the Marquee Tool will be quicker but it will not give the options of changing the scale and rotation angle.
The  Rotation  controls the starting angle for the texture when painting and is often used to avoid pattern repetition. As in Surveyor Classic, holding down the  [  or  ]  keys while painting will continuously change the angle.
Changing the rotation angle during painting is not recommended for PBR Textures.


 Scrapbook Data 

When this Target is selected, the second drop down box will give a choice of two Scrapbook Data tools. The choices are:-
  • Scrapbook Clone
  • Scrapbook Brush
The different control options available with this brush tool are shown in the Tools Options Palette. This brush tool also uses the Scrapbook Palette. If both of these palette are not visible on the screen then refer to the Notes at the top of this document.
The available brush tool options are shown with a  Gold  coloured icon next to their names. Those options that have their icon greyed out will be ignored, but they can still be edited.
 Scrapbook Clone 
Clone options
 Scrapbook Brush 
Brush options

 Radius  the brush radius (metres) - see Notes: below
Range:  5m and above
 Rotation  initial rotation angle (degrees)
Range:  0° to ±360° (larger angles can be entered)
 Scale  the texture pattern size (scale)
Range:  0.01% = smallest, to 100% = full size
 Shape  brush shape
Options:  Brush Circle, Brush Square, Brush Natural

 Edit Effect Layers... 

The Placement Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  E 

The Placement Tool is used to add assets to the landscape.

The Eyedropper Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  R 

The Eyedropper Tool is used to identify objects that are in the landscape. The objects can be textures, effect layers, scenery, rolling stock, track and track equipment, and splines.

The Free Move Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  S 

The Free Move Tool is used to move objects in the landscape.

The Fine Adjustment Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  D 

The Fine Adjustment Tool is used to make fine adjustments (XYZ axis, rotation, tilt) to objects in the landscape.

The Marquee Tool

Keyboard Shortcut:  F 

The Marquee Tool is used to select areas of the landscape.

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This page was created by Trainz user pware in January 2023 and was last updated as shown below.